Chapter 2 (manga)
"Turn-Up Book" is the 2nd chapter of The Mystic Archives of Dantalian manga. It's divided into six parts, including an epilogue. After the death of his grandfather Wesley Disward, Hugh inherits a mansion and a collection of books. He meets Dalian, a friend of the late bibilomaniac. Together, they go investigate Henry Conrad, the man that supposedly killed Wesley to get hold of a valuable book.The Mystic Archives of Dantalian manga, Chapter 2. __TOC__ Summary Part I Hugh is at a table by himself, since Camilla is late and Dalian vanished, leaving only a teddy bear behind with a note saying she would be back. Meanwhile, Camilla is discussing with a book seller. She’s looking for books that were already purchased by Dalian. Camilla runs after Dalian to ask for a book, but the latter had already disappeared. Soon after, Hugh and Camilla meet each other. She mentions the girl that had purchased a whole bookstore. Hugh quickly deduces Camilla is talking about Dalian. The Biblioprincess is heard arguing with a man about the lack of pastries. Hugh puts a bag in her head to finish the quarrel. She immediately shows antipathy to Camilla, disapproving the western attire she’s wearing. Camilla teases Dalian, calling her a child, but manages to keep her composed by giving her a candy. Hugh tells Camilla he’s living at his grandfather’s old estate. Dalian nods off and Hugh says she could catch a chill sleeping in that place. Camilla thinks it’s nice how Hugh is doing okay, even after fighting in the Great War. Dalian wakes up when Camilla asks if Hugh had found The Mystic Archives of Dantalian he was looking for. He tries to escape the conversation, but she insists, saying that if anyone ever had access to such a place, it would be Hugh’s grandfather. Hugh reaches London after a long time. He gives a five pence coin to a girl selling flowers. He catches the attention of two women due to his trench coat. They realize Hugh is back from the Western Front. The letter Hugh received mentions that his grandfather’s mansion is a half day walk from the city. He arrives the place where his grandfather used to live, noticing how the place is decrepit. From the stairs going up, Dalian observes Hugh. Hugh_Dalian_Camilla.png|Hugh, Dalian and Camilla have tea. Dalian_sees_Hugh.jpg|Dalian sees Hugh for the first time after the Great War. Part II He starts to investigate the tower of the mansion. Dalian watches Hugh approaching through a window. He cannot find the books from his grandfather’s collection, although everything else was untouched. Hugh sits on the ground and starts to reminisce about his grandfather when it starts to rain. He remembers how he was enjoying a pop-up book as a child. However, his grandfather took that book and gave him another one. Dalian was next to Hugh’s grandfather at that moment, with her same appearance. Hugh is now holding the same book his grandfather gave him. Back to his senses, Hugh sees someone and follows the person, ending up at a dead end. He finds a secret path behind an empty bookcase. He descends a dark stairway while holding his lighter and finds a huge library with all the thousands of books from his late grandfather. He lights some candles and finds Dalian sitting in an antique chair. He introduces himself, adding that it was his grandfather’s will for Hugh to inherit The Mystic Archives of Dantalian. Dalian is wary of Hugh, hiding herself behind the chair. Wesley_Disward.jpg|Hugh's memories of Dalian and his grandfather. Dalian_(manga).jpg|Hugh sees Dalian for the first time since his childhood. Part III Hugh has a recurrent dream, a memory from when he was a child wandering around a place filled with books. According to Dalian, that world is known as the "Labyrinth Library", named by the first person that wandered the place. The dream ends before Hugh can hear its second name. Dalian questions Hugh. He affirms he could have the mansion provided that he accepts the duties from the'' Bibliotheca Mystica de Dantalian''. Dalian says there’s nothing like that in this world. Hugh thinks he may find a hint about the whereabouts of the Mystic Archives in that place, skeptical about how Dalian could have read all those books. However, she describes some of the books in details, for Hugh’s astonishment. She says his grandfather Wesley was her friend and that it was a shame he passed away. Then, Hugh asks if she have seen a pet, since his grandfather’s will states that he should take care of something called “Dalian”. She gets angry and says he couldn’t be the “key-keeper”. Dalian hits Hugh’s face with her knee and then finally introduces herself. They go to the kitchen, where Hugh asks if Dalian was kidnapped by his grandfather. She denies and explains she was waiting in that room. Hugh offers Dalian bread and tea. She accepts, but complains about the lack of sugar in the bread. Hugh lays down, telling Dalian to wake him up in an hour so he could escort her home before his meeting. He uses his trench coat to cover himself. She approaches him and tries to touch the key hanging from his neck. He quickly grabs her hand and tells her to not touch the key. Without the trench coat, it’s possible to see that Hugh sports a vertical gun holster. Dalian asks if he was a soldier. He answers that he was a pilot and that he wasn’t really serving, since the war had already ended. He explains he had no intention of going to university and he was thinking he could live an easy life with his grandfather’s inheritance. Wesley was feared by the family because of his eccentricity, so only Hugh would come near that mansion. The bibliomaniac even gave half of his estate in exchange for a single book. He scorns the idea that Wesley had a book that would curse and destroy its owner. Hugh was disappointed by Wesley’s collection, never seeing the supposed compendium containing a vast amount of knowledge called “Bibliotheca Mystica de Dantalian”. Dalian affirms he doesn’t know anything. They are interrupted by Hugh’s escort. He has been invited over by Henry Conrad. Hugh is on a carriage, going to the hotel king, Henry Conrad, Wesley’s old acquaintance and murderer. Dalian is accompanying him. She doesn’t understand why Hugh is going to visit the man who killed his grandfather, all to get hold of a book. Hugh explains he’s trying to find evidence, since only rumors say Conrad is a criminal. Dalian affirms that, since there’s a full moon that night, Conrad would peer into that which should not be seen. She tells him the forbidden door to the Library will open for him, if he possesses the qualifications to be a key-keeper. She gets mad when Hugh calls her weird. They arrive at Conrad’s mansion, but no one appears to greet them. One of the servants runs inside the mansion. Dalian says they might be too late. She also runs inside, and Hugh follows her. From the top of the mansion, an eerie clown watches them. Inside, Hugh notices the smell of blood in the air. Henry Conrad greets them. Meanwhile, the servant finds a tiger eating the body of a woman. Part IV A clown appears next to the tiger. Meanwhile, Conrad calls Hugh and Dalian “key-keeper” and “Black Biblioprincess”, respectively. Conrad kneels to kiss Dalian’s hand. Hugh thinks they know each other. Dalian ignores them, concerned only on recovering the book. Hugh notices Conrad has disappeared. They hear the servant’s scream. Dalian jumps downstairs, followed by Hugh. They find bodies. Dalian affirms what caused the unusual event is in Conrad’s study. She notices someone is hiding nearby and ask it to reveal itself. A clown holding juggling clubs appears from inside a page lying on the floor. Blades come out from the props. Hugh shots the clown with his revolver before he can attack them. Pages scatter across the floor where the clown once stood. They are not yet safe, since tigers are rounding Conrad’s mansion. Hugh grabs Dalian and runs. They hide in a room, where Dalian talks about “the world in the vase” and how there are things in the world it’s better off not knowing. Hugh regards it as a fairy tale, making Dalian furious. They leave the room and find a trampled body. It was a work of an elephant, according to Dalian. Dalian explains the animals and performers were released by The Harlequinade, a pop-up book. She refers to it as a Phantom Book. More creatures start to come out of the pages scattered across the floor. Hugh discovers that only the'' Bibliotheca Mystica de Dantalian'' can seal the dangerous Phantom Books read by unsuitable people. Hugh says he has the duty to prevent the damage the book can cause to the people in the village. He prepares to shoot the creatures and asks to Dalian to run away. Instead of running away, Dalian tells Hugh to take out his key. While wounded, being attacked by a tiger, Hugh says the words inscribed in the key. Part V The tiger attacking Hugh disappears. Darkness comes out from the keyhole in Dalian’s pendant. Hugh supports her and uses his key, opening the Labyrinth Archive. She removes the Liber de Sylphis ''from the hole in her chest. Dalian reads the book to get rid of the hostile animals. Her eyes are black. After an intense light takes all the castle, Hugh sees Dalian going upstairs and follows her. Dalian is listening to Conrad. He was envious of Wesley, owner of a valuable library, where one could grasp all human knowledge. While Conrad is talking, Dalian takes a book from inside his study and goes away. Hugh realizes Conrad is dead, with the upper half of his head missing. The man, lacking the knowledge to use the Phantom Books, was killed as soon as he opened it. The words Hugh and Dalian have heard before were only lingering regrets. While Dalian is sealing ''The Harlequinade, Hugh realizes she’s the “world in the vase”. He remembered they have met before. Hugh got lost inside “the world in the vase” as a child. He had met a girl called “Dalian” and received a key. Hugh also promised to become her friend and take her to the outside world. They leave the mansion and set off to find a place to get breakfast. Epilogue Camilla arrives at Hugh’s mansion with some sweets for Dalian. The latter is in a bad mood. Camilla realizes her dress was ripped when she tried to reach a high bookshelf. Camilla puts Dalian in her lap to stitch her dress. Later, they have tea with Hugh. Camilla and Dalian are unusually sitting together. Hugh notices the stitches in Dalian’s dress when she gets up. Camilla has also stitched a cat. Dalian explains it’s a proof of their friendship. Trivia * The book Hugh receives from his grandfather has a dragon hoarding treasure on its cover. It's a concept present in tales since Ancient Greece, at least. Originally, a dragon comes out from The Harlequinade.The Mystic Archives of Dantalian light novel, Chapter 4, volume 1. * The glove on Hugh's right hand keeps appearing and disappearing throughout the first pages of Part I. * As Hugh is skeptical about how much Dalian knows his grandfather's collection, she starts to describe some of the books, referencing real literature. ** She points to the Atharvaveda, a collection of 730 hymns with about 6,000 mantras, divided into 20 books, which adresses practical issues of daily life. As she explained, the Atharvaveda includes mantras and verses for treating a variety of ailments.Atharvaveda. (2016, December 22). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 17:28, February 18, 2017, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Atharvaveda&oldid=756138028 ** Dalian said she had just read the theory of atomic decay from Frederick Soddy, an English radiochemist. In 1902, the formulation of the radioactive decay law, by Soddy and New Zealand physicist Ernest Rutherford, discussed that radioactivity is due to the transmutation of elements.Frederick Soddy. (2017, February 4). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 17:29, February 18, 2017, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Frederick_Soddy&oldid=763620623 The theory is also mentioned by the wise kids in Chapter 3, in the first volume of the light novel.The Mystic Archives of Dantalian light novel, Chapter 3, volume 1. References Category:Manga Chapters